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Tommy should be afraid of the man sitting in the kitchen and cutting up potatoes for him. He can't bring himself to be.
He had been there when he had blown everything up, when his brother tried to stomp out any remaining bits of the country he called home. The country he once called home. He had been cast out, banished from everything he had ever known and put through hell. The masked man broke him, in anyway he could. He could still feel fists landing their heavy blows on his face, and steel toed boots piercing his ribs like nothing. It still hurt, despite his brother providing him bandages and medicine to help numb the pain.
Tommy couldn't help but feel guilty at crawling to his brother, burrowing his way underneath his house like a raccoon and being cornered and held like a misbehaving cat. He was embarrassed and his ego was more bruised then his face. He couldn't do much as his brother dragged him off into the warmer cabin after bickering, and told him to just wait after he was patched up. He could smell some type of soup from the kitchen, and he occasionally heard the shuffling of the brute in the kitchen. The cabin was small, with various decorations and equipment scattered about. His brother was a large man, and so seeing him navigate such a small space was amusing. He did it so easily, meanwhile Tommy was half his size and couldn't help from knocking over a glass.
His brother wasn't staying anything to him, and Tommy was returning the favor. He was hungry, bruised ribs protruding from his stomach. He didn't have the energy to speak or even argue with his brother. Techno didn't look much better, his arm wrapped in blood soaked bandages and bags sat heavy under his already tired eyes. Him and Tommy where matching in that aspect, they both looked like they hadn't slept in days.
But none of that mattered right now. What mattered right now was the fact that Tommy was going to have some proper food after months. His brother always had a strange obsession with food. Providing food for Pogtopia, and cooking up suspicious soups for everyone else on the server. This was no different, Tommy thought it was funny that his brother's first thought after patching him up was to feed him. It was his way of showing he cared, and despite his lack of words he wanted to say the other was worried for him. Techno was a very caring man, he just had a different way of showing it. It was a stupid way, at least thats what Tommy thought sometimes.
He stared down at the steaming bowl of soup that his brother had place in front of him, small bits of potato bobbing near the top of the dish. He practically inhaled the dish, his brother watching him the entire time. Another weird habit of the famous Technoblade, he liked watching people eat. Tommy thought it was weird but always just assumed it was a Techno thing, his brother could have a lot of strange habits and who was he to question them?
When he was done with his bowl he gently held it out to the other, hands shaking with the effort. Techno didn't hesitate to pick up the bowl and move to the kitchen to give him seconds. It was so strange to be cared for, with the two falling into routines they had set before this server. Tommy missed his brother, and he hated to admit it. A feeling of warmth curled in his gut as he just basked in the warmth of the cabin. It was nice. After so long having to barely get by, to be offered a sanctuary. Tommy would rather die then admit that though, his ego was far to large for that. However, he knew the brute could easily see through his illusions of false confidence. He was a spitfire, a solider, a loud mouth brat. He had been called everything in his time on this server, and to have someone see past all of that was a relief. But, he had been marked with that persona, so he was going to keep it for as long as possible.
He downed the other bowl just as quickly, and finally leaned back onto the large plush chair. It was one of the few pieces of furniture that was in the cabin’s bottom floor. It was a nice chair, plush and red. Tommy wrapped himself into the blanket tighter, not caring for any dirt he got on the patchwork quilt. He knew his brother was always big on cleanliness, but neither had the energy to speak, let alone argue about the state of Tommy’s appearance.
The thing that bothered him the most was the way Techno stared at his hair. The brute stared mournfully at his dirty and greasy curls, wanting nothing more then to wash the dirt and sand and mud out of his once beautiful golden hair. When he was little Techno was constantly fussing over his hair, obsessively combing through his hair and chuffing when the light hit his curls. Tommy understood why, it was a piglin trait. Piglins adored gold and would do almost anything to get it, and Tommy would always make jokes about being his older brother’s favorite because of his golden hair. But now? Now his hair took on a greasy and dirty look, seeming more dirty blonde then gold.
He felt a small sense of shame, but didn’t let it show. He had gotten good at that, masking feels behind brazen words and a shaky trigger finger. Tommy was a very emotional person, but would do anything to deny that fact. He would do anything to prove he didn’t feel that deeply, because if he did then it would be used against him. But, what he didn’t know, was that he never was able to hide it. He was an open book to anyone who took the time to look at him a bit closer.
They never exchanged a word, neither had the energy. Techno almost spoke a few times but just couldn’t bring himself to actually utter the words. Tommy didn’t have the energy to hear them, and while he did care the most he could respond with was a brief glance and a sigh. He was full and he felt warmth blossoming in his stomach from the soup. It was the best he felt in months, and despite the strange tenseness in the room there was a comfort.
In the end, Tommy fell asleep. Curled up in the big red chair and listening to the crackle of the fireplace. He was only barely awake when he felt the press of his forehead touching his brother’s. He didn’t dare move as he was lifted up and carried like something precious up the latter. He let his old brother tuck him into the large and warm bed, and listened as his brother climbed back down the later.
His brother treated him like something precious and he didn’t deserve it. But, he would never admit that. He would bask in the attention as long as he could.